Hubble's Variable Nebula LRGB

NGC 2261 (also known as Hubble's Variable Nebula or Caldwell 46) is a variable nebula located in the constellation Monoceros. The nebula is illuminated by the star R Monocerotis (R Mon), which is not directly visible itself.

This astrophotography is a stacking of Luminance frames from December 2020 to April 2021: it does not highlight the variation in brightness of the star/nebula.

I’m currently working on a gif version.

RA: 06h 39m 09.2s

DEC: +08° 45’ 35.6"

Size: 14 x 14 arcmin

Orientation: Up is 359 degrees E of N

Location: Monoceros

Distance: 2.5 kly

Magnitude: 9.0

Acquisition December 2020 to April 2021

Total acquisition time of 19.6 hours.

Location: El Sauce Observatory, Río Hurtado, Coquimbo, Chile

L,R,G,B filters

Optics: Planewave CDK24

Mount: Mathis MI-1000/1250

CCD: FLI ProLine PL9000

Pre Processing: CCDstack, Pixinsight & Excalibrator

Post Processing: Photoshop CC